The King of Balance
by inspirationassaulted
Summary: Rin never could stop getting involved in fights, especially if it was to protect someone. Father Fujimoto died saving Rin from human thugs in a fight when Rin was nine, but seeing Shirou's death awoke Rin's demon side. Abandoned by his twin, Rin follows Mephisto into Gehenna and his destined role there. Six years later he is back in Assiah. Some Amaimon/Rin
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I would like to preface this story by saying that I know no Japanese and very little about the culture. I discovered Blue Exorcist because I have an interest in demons and demonology, and it is my first experience in manga/anime. Rather than make a fool of myself or a mockery of anything else, I use exclusively English terms. However, I do speak German, so Mephisto may use more German than he would in canon. I promise to translate!

Every chapter of this story will begin with a flashback. In the main action, Rin and Yukio are fifteen. It follows (to a point) the action of the anime series. The flashbacks will give some insight into what is happening in the main action, but they will not happen in order. I will try to make it as clear as possible how old Rin is in each one.

* * *

Rin tipped his head back and glared at the sun. What right did it have to be happy and shining when the man he had thought was his father was dead? It was a funeral, so the weather should be rainy. That's how it always was in films.

His hat was hot and itchy. Rin wished he could take it off, but then everyone would see the pointed tips of his ears. His shirt was loose, though, so no one could see the tail he had wrapped around his belly.

The nine-year-old looked over at his brother, but Yukio just scowled and turned his head away. That hurt. Rin felt a new wave of tears well up, but he just wiped them away and knelt in front of the gravestone.

"I'm sorry, Shirou," he whispered. "I should have listened to you. I should have tried harder." He could still see the fire when he closed his eyes, a mix of yellow and unnatural blue.

The old man had warned him not to get in anymore fights, no matter what he saw, but he just couldn't help it. The two guys had looked like they were almost twenty and they had been beating up a little kid in glasses. He just had to jump in, because the kid had reminded him of Yukio, and Rin always stood up for Yukio.

Shirou had found him there, being roundly beaten by the two guys. Rin didn't really know what had happened next, but one of the guys had stabbed Shirou in the back. Something inside Rin had broken, and all he remembered was blue flames and screaming in pain.

Then Mephisto had appeared and told Rin to come with him if he wanted to live. So Rin ran with the strange man dressed like a clown, because Shirou told him to go. Shirou told him to leave him behind and live.

Rin missed Shirou. He missed Yukio, too. His little brother wouldn't talk to him anymore. He just glared, like he hated Rin more than anything else in the world.

"Little Brother." Rin wiped away more tears and looked up. Mephisto's colourful clothing seemed unnaturally bright in the cemetery, and he smiled kindly. "It's time to go."

Rin looked over at Yukio again, but Yukio walked away without looking at them. "Ok," he said sadly. He took Mephisto's hand and let him help him up and lead him out of the graveyard.

Maybe someday he would talk to Yukio and understand why his own twin brother seemed to hate him so much.

* * *

Rin sat in the shadows in a high corner of the cram school classroom. His tail swung freely below the heavy pipe he perched on. He watched the students gathering below him.

Three boys sat together at one table, two with colourful hair and one bald one. They interacted with the familiarity of long friends, but the one in the centre with the yellow streak was clearly the leader. He heard them call him 'Bon,' an honorific title.

Two other friends, both girls, sat together at another table. Rin didn't think the brown-haired one would last long, but her purple-haired friend was arrogant enough to go far. She also had tiny, stupid-looking eyebrows. Rin termed her Eyebrows, deciding it was better than any name she might have.

Two more sat by themselves. One was a boy with a puppet on his hand that he spoke quietly to. Rin disregarded him. The second was a figure in boy's clothes with a hood pulled down low, playing on a handheld game. Rin knew that aura well. It was Shura Kirigakure. No doubt she was there in case he or his elder brothers tried anything.

"Which are the ones Elder Brother told us about?"

Rin looked up at Amaimon, hanging from the ceiling with one hand. "Those." He pointed at the three boys.

Amaimon dropped to sit next to Rin. "Survivors of the Blue Night," he murmured. "They better not see you."

Rin smirked. "Good thing Satan taught me how to control my flames, then, right?"

"Do they pose a real threat to you?"

"I won't know until I see them in action."

"Would you like to me to create some excitement for you, Little Brother?" Amaimon asked, turning his big, curious eyes on Rin.

Rin sighed. "You'll do nothing, Amaimon," he ordered. "By the Gate, I should keep you on a chain."

Amaimon's big eyes went even wider and he vanished without a sound.

The door opened and Yukio walked in. His eyes seemed dull behind his glasses, and Rin could pick out at least three guns holstered in and beneath his coat.

"Pleased to meet you," he greeted. "I'm Yukio Okumura, your instructor for Anti-Demon Pharmaceutics."

A few students greeted him, but Rin could see most of them were wondering why he was so young.

"Now, I'm actually the same age as you all, but I've been studying to be an exorcist since I was seven and just passed my test two years ago. I think it best if you all just call me Mr Okumura though."

Rin reached into his pocket and took out the lollipop he had a feeling would be there. Amaimon liked leaving them in his pockets. If Rin didn't eat it, his brother would just take it back from him the next time he wanted one.

"To the first order of business," Yukio was saying. "Is there anyone here who has not received their Temptaint yet?" Three humans raised their hands, and Rin snorted. Such simple little people, wanting to be exorcists without even knowing the terror that was looking a demon in the eye at midnight.

Rin tuned out as Yukio explained the Temptaint ritual and about hobgoblins, the demons they would be calling up. He wrinkled his nose as Yukio uncorked a vial and the smell of rotten blood drifted back to him.

With a series of pops, half a dozen hobgoblins appeared in the room. They all turned to look at him, but Rin raised a finger to his lips and they turned back around. The little round demons sniffed and snuffled around the gathered would-be exorcists. The students jerked and twitched as the hobgoblins bit and scratched at their fingers and ankles.

One appeared with a little puff next to him. It wobbled, holding onto the pipe with one meaty fist and tapping the back of Rin's hand with the other. Rin smiled down at his brother's little familiar, taking the hobgoblin's hand.

"Hello, Behemoth," he whispered.

"Can everyone see them now?" Yukio asked. The few who needed the Temptaint still nodded. "Good."

Behemoth let out a whine as Yukio pulled out a gun and destroyed the other hobgoblins in the space of a heartbeat. He growled as more hobgoblins appeared, bigger and angrier, and Yukio demolished them too.

"Behemoth, no!" Rin hissed, but the hobgoblin was already gone, growling and swelling as he advanced on Yukio. "Amaimon's going to be mad," he muttered, but he knew his elder brother better than that. Amaimon would be happy his little familiar could cause chaos on its own.

Rin let out a put-upon sigh and leapt from the pipe, landing lightly on two feet between Yukio and Behemoth. He snapped two long knives out with a motion only demon eyes could follow. Yukio's guns clattered to the floor, released when Rin slapped the teen exorcist's hands with the flat of his blades and stunned the nerves.

"Not that one," Rin warned.

Yukio gasped, too stunned to even reach for another weapon. "Rin?"

Rin made an expression that somewhat resembled a smile. Yukio shuddered as he caught sight of long, sharp incisors. Rin ran the tip of his tongue over one, just to make sure Yukio knew what he was. "Yukio. Long time, no see."

"Why are you here?" Yukio demanded.

"In the cram school?" Rin twitched when Behemoth nibbled at the end of his tail. It reminded him of what Amaimon and Mephisto always told him: a gentleman never shows his tail.

Yukio's eyes followed the motion of his tail as he wrapped it around his waist. He scowled. "In Assiah," he spat. "The Vatican should have killed you years ago. I should have killed you."

"Years ago they might have let you," Rin replied casually. "Do it now, and you'll find yourself arrested for harming an ally of the Grigori."

"What?!"

Rin decided Yukio was shocked enough to not attempt to attack anymore. "Come here, Behemoth." Rin cradled the once-again-little hobgoblin in one arm. "Naughty little thing. You should have stayed in Gehenna." He ignored the gasps of the would-be exorcists. They had much to learn. "Come see the director when your class is over," he told Yukio.

"I will," Yukio promised, nearly growling.

"Good." Rin turned and walked toward the door. "I should return Amaimon's familiar to him. Try not to get carried away."


	2. Chapter 2

Light flooded Rin's eyes as he stepped through his Gate. The yawning circle of darkness closed behind him without a sound, but Mephisto looked up from his desk anyway. Rin knew better than to even try to sneak up on his oldest brother in his domain. Mephisto knew everything that happened in his office.

"Hello, Littlest Brother," the King of Time grinned.

"Elder Brother," Rin nodded. He took of his jacket and slumped into a chair facing Mephisto. "What do you want to talk about now?"

"This." Mephisto flicked something at him at a speed that made it blur.

Rin snatched the object inches in front of his face. "A card?"

"An ID card," Mephisto corrected. "A copy, at least. Yukio Okumura's official exorcist identification."

Rin blanked his face to hide his turmoil of emotions, knowing Mephisto was watching him carefully. "He passed his exams, then," he murmured. He tossed the ID copy back. "How do the other exorcists feel about having a thirteen-year-old working beside them?"

"They respect him a great deal. He was raised by the last Paladin, after all," the older demon pointed out. "Fujimoto spent two years before his death personally teaching young Yukio. Most exorcists, including those at the Vatican, believe he will do great things."

Rin hummed. He turned the information over in his mind, looking at it from every angle, just like Mephisto had taught him to over his years in Gehenna.

Very few angles looked good.

"How destructive is he?"

"Very," Mephisto replied solemnly. "This year I can use his Novice status to watch him carefully, but next year…" he shook his head. "I have no doubt the Vatican will promote him quickly, and I will not always be able to keep a watch over him."

"He will need to be watched, though," Rin murmured.

Mephisto nodded. "I will make him a teacher after he is promoted. That way I can hold him here in the school without risk. He cannot do much damage while still being responsible for students."

"I want to watch him," Rin decided.

"Littlest Brother…" Mephisto sighed. "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure!" Rin snapped. He took a deep breath and pulled his emotions back. "I am the King of Balance. Let me do my job, Elder Brother."

Mephisto leaned back in his chair with a wide smile. "Very well, Little Prince."

* * *

Rin stepped through the infinity key doorway and into Mephisto's office. His older brother and caretaker looked up without even a trace of surprise.

"You let him see you already?"

Rin hopped up to sit on the back on an armchair, his feet on the seat and tail swinging free. He shrugged. "Behemoth was with me when he started taking out hobgoblins. I couldn't let him kill Brother's familiar, could I?"

Mephisto smiled that smile that gave away nothing. "You are very good with Brother."

Rin just shrugged again. "Yukio will be here soon. He doesn't believe I'm an ally of the Grigori."

"Of course he doesn't."

Rin leapt off the chair and walked over to the window. The sun was setting over True Cross Academy Town. He had always liked watching the sun set from that window. On perfectly clear days, there was a second when the sun hit the perfect spot and it looked like the whole town was burning, reflecting the red sun from every window.

There were too many clouds that night for that magic second. Rin watched the growing dark anti-climax in silence. The only sound in the room was Mephisto's scratching pen as he filled out some paperwork.

The door banged up as Yukio stomped in. "You better have a damn good explanation for why Rin's out of Gehenna!"

"Such brotherly love," Mephisto huffed. "When did you become so angry, Yukio Okumura?"

"When I saw that bastard again," Yukio growled.

Rin turned to look at his human brother over his shoulder. "That bastard is right here," he said blandly.

"I don't care," Yukio shot back. He glared venomously.

Rin sighed. "I would have thought exorcists were taught to control their emotions. There are a lot of demons that read human emotions."

Yukio laughed coldly. "I was never the one who had a problem controlling myself!"

"No," Rin agreed, "that was me. The first thing Sa- Father," he corrected himself with a glance at the setting sun, "did was make me control myself before my flames destroyed Gehenna."

Slipping out some of his power, Rin let his flames engulf the bushy end of his tail. He let them burn for a few seconds before he smothered them again.

"My control is complete," he promised. "I'm not going to expose myself accidentally to your students from the Cursed Temple. Their little minds would explode."

Yukio sneered and turned away from him. "How did he escape a death sentence from the Vatican?" he asked Mephisto.

Mephisto launched into a watered down explanation of Rin's role in keeping to balance between demons and exorcists. Rin let the words wash over him and returned to looking out the window.

"A gentleman always covers his tail, Little Brother." Cool fingers lifted Rin's shirt as he wrapped his tail around his waist.

Rin looked back over his shoulder to smile at Amaimon. "You'd think I'd remember by now."

"I guess six years isn't enough for you," Amaimon said. "Maybe after six hundred you'll remember." Amaimon's hand slipped into his. "Elder Brother is being boring."

Rin squeezed the King of Earth's hand. "I'm being boring now, too," he told him. "You should go back to Gehenna."

Amaimon's lower lip pushed out as he turned childishly wide eyes on Rin. "Gehenna's boring."

Rin leaned over to knock his their foreheads together lightly. "If you can sit through the boring part, we'll go get ice cream, ok?"

Amaimon nodded and wandered over to play with Behemoth in the corner of the office.

Rin turned to find Mephisto watching him fondly and Yukio staring in shock and horror. "What, Yukio?"

"How can you be nice to a demon king? You act like you like him!"

Rin frowned. "I am a demon king, Yukio," he said bluntly. "And of course I like him. He's my brother."

"I think, Little Brother," Mephisto spoke up, "that you and Amaimon are closer than humans generally are with their brothers. You two do look very…romantic together."

Rin just shrugged. "He's like a kid, Yukio. He's curious and a handful sometimes, but in six years he's never changed the way he treated me. Can you say the same?"

Yukio flinched. "Rin…" he whispered, and just for a second Rin could see beneath his hard exterior to the scared little boy he still was inside. Then he scowled and his eyes went dull again. "No, maybe I can't. But can you tell me that my brother was still the same person after that night?"

"Yes, I was," Rin replied flatly. "I'll be watching your classes, Intermediate Exorcist First Class Okumura. Amaimon, let's get ice cream."

"Wheee!" The way Amaimon cheered without changing his facial expression had long ago become endearing to Rin. The older demon prince opened a doorway with Mephisto's infinity key and dragged Rin through by both hands.

* * *

Mephisto steepled his hands together and watched Yukio Okumura. Perhaps it had been cruel not to tell him about Rin's activities in Gehenna, especially after the older twin had become a full-fledged exorcist, but Mephisto very rarely indulged in such human emotions as guilt and regret.

"Your brother was nine years old when you refused to ever speak to him again," he recited blandly. "Shirou trusted me to take care of Rin if something ever happened to him. Granted, he thought it would be demons hunting Rin when he was older, not two human thugs." He saw Yukio's jaw drop before he recovered himself. "Yes, you never asked about that night. Rin simply cannot stop himself from protecting others. He saw a boy who reminded him of you being beaten by two young men and jumped in to help the boy. He was hopelessly outclassed when Shirou found him-"

"Stop!" Yukio held up a hand, shaking. "I don't want to hear it."

"Very well." Mephisto leaned back and propped his feet on his desk. "Simply find me if you ever wish to know more."

Yukio stood and left the room. "I won't."

Mephisto winced as the door slammed. Human emotions were quite loud sometimes.


	3. Chapter 3

"Happy Birthday, Littlest Brother," Mephisto said with his usual mysterious smile.

Rin just grinned and blew out his candles, shaped like the number twelve. His older brother had brought him into Assiah to the True Cross Academy and had his little cooking familiar bake a cake for him. "Can I cut it?"

"Not yet," Mephisto shook his head. "We have to have a talk before it gets dark."

Rin wanted to pout, but Father always said no son of Satan would ever pout over anything. "Ok," he sighed instead. "But we can have cake after, right? And Amaimon can come?"

"Of course." Mephisto ruffled his hair, making him squeal and struggle to get away. "Do you remember what I say about Assiah and Gehenna?"

Rin nodded. "Assiah and Gehenna are like a person looking into a mirror. Neither one can exist without the other," he recited, proud of himself.

"Good," Mephisto complemented. "Now, have you been watching and listening to Father like I told you too?"

"Yes, Brother."

"Then can you tell me what Father really wants to do, more than anything else?"

Rin scrunched up his face as he thought. "He wants to open a huge Gate," he said slowly, "so all the demons can come into Assiah and they can both be one world."

"Very good," Mephisto grinned. "Now, I want you to think about that really hard. Would that work? Is it a good idea?"

Rin did think very hard. He sat right down on the floor and thought, fiddling with the end of his tail until Mephisto took it out of his hands with a tsk. "The humans can't go into Gehenna, right?" he asked. Mephisto nodded. "So that isn't very fair, is it? If all the demons can come here, but humans can't go there, then it isn't really one new world. It's just like…" he waved his hands, looking for the right words, "more Gehenna."

"That's exactly right," Mephisto praised, making Rin smile. He felt very proud of himself when he made his older brother happy. "But if Assiah ceases to exist…"

"Then so does Gehenna," Rin finished, smile fading. "Why would Father do that?"

"Because he's obsessed with his idea," Mephisto replied. "He is going to do everything in his incredible power to make his plan work, which is why you have to use your own considerable power to stop him."

"But," Rin frowned, "why me? I can't stop Father, he's way too strong!"

"Because you are both the son of Satan and half human." Mephisto crouched to look Rin in the eye. "You belong to both Assiah and Gehenna, and I am sure that one day you will be just as strong as Father."

The absolute conviction his brother had in him made Rin feel stronger already. "Ok," he decided. "I'll stop him. I don't want Assiah or Gehenna to be destroyed." He bit his bottom lip. "But what do I do?"

"For now, you keep watching and listening," Mephisto told him. "Father can't ever know what we're doing or he'll try to kill you, so don't talk about it in Gehenna. I'll bring you into Assiah sometimes when the sun is up so we can talk, alright?"

"Alright," Rin agreed seriously. Mephisto patted him on the head and stood. "Now can we have cake?" he asked, smile breaking out again.

"Brother has cake?" Amaimon asked, popping into Mephisto's office. He levitated while sitting. "Whee!"

"Amaimon!" Rin launched himself at Amaimon, letting the demon catch him and spin him around. He laughed, dizzy, as his brother dropped him to the floor again. "Let's have cake! Brother wants a corner piece with lots of icing."

Mephisto chuckled as he cut the cake, already aware of how much Amaimon was enamoured of sweets. It was Rin's fault for introducing him to sugar in the first place.

* * *

"Little Prince."

Rin looked up from his book. Whether he knew it or not, Mephisto only called him that when he was about to say something demon-related.

Mephisto grinned at him from across his desk, sharp canines glinting in the afternoon light. "I will be sending Yukio out on a call in a few minutes."

"What for?" Rin asked, already knowing that he was going to be following his twin secretly.

"The lovely Madam Moriyama, who runs the supply shop, has a daughter who takes care of their garden," the demon king said. "A dekalp seems to have taken root in the garden."

"A plant demon?" Rin scoffed. "They just like mischief. All of Brother's kin are like that."

"Ah, but just like Amaimon, they all sometimes take their entertainment a bit too far," Mephisto pointed out. "This one is spreading roots into Miss Moriyama and feeding on her obsession with the garden." Rin was still unconvinced, so Mephisto played his trump card. "I do not like how strong it is becoming, Little Prince."

Rin sighed. Mephisto had always taught him that part of his role was to keep demons from gaining too much strength in Assiah and creating too much havoc. Strong, wild demons ran the chance of infecting too many people with Temptaints and causing a panic. It was better if fewer people could see demons. Besides, Amaimon never could be trusted to keep a good eye on his kin.

"If it's just the one dekalp, why do I have to watch Yukio exorcise it?" Rin groaned, standing.

"Because I do not trust anything related to Amaimon to go as I expect," Mephisto said blithely. He tossed a key to Rin. "That will take you to the road leading to the supply shop."

"Okay." Rin shrugged his jacket on over his shoulders. "Anything else?" he asked as he ran his fingers over the sheaths tucked into his sides to check his long knives.

"Do not let him see you this time, Rin," Mephisto warned. "I do not mind that he knows you are watching his classes, but he cannot know he is not trusted as an exorcist. His complaints could cause trouble with the Vatican and the Grigori."

"Right."

Rin stuck the key into Mephisto's office door. As he opened it and stepped into the bright sunlight, he heard the demon calling Yukio's phone behind him.

"Yukio, dear! I have a little job for you…"

* * *

"Yes?" Mephisto asked without turning away from the window. The stars were hidden by clouds, but the lights of the town sparkled like stars held down to earth.

"He's unorthodox."

Mephisto hummed, pressing his fingertips together under his chin. "And the dekalp?"

There was the sound of a body thumping into a chair on the other side of the desk. "He dealt with it. Eventually." A snort. "It had made a sort of deal with the girl. Things didn't go well when she tried to back out."

"It took her hostage?"

"Yeah. He started bluffing and the demon called it. He shot her."

"What?!" Mephisto whipped around, nearly upsetting his chair.

Rin grinned darkly at him, sharp teeth glinting in the low life, and Mephisto was struck once more by how much the youngest demon prince resembled their father. There was a faint blue glow to his eyes that could only be seen in the dark. It was nothing compared to Satan's fiery magnificence, but it was eerie nonetheless.

"Plant vitamins in a dummy bullet," Rin explained with a short laugh. There was something slightly vicious about the sound, something…demonic. Unlike his brother, Rin had fully accepted and grown into his heritage. "It let her go, and he got rid of it."

"I see," Mephisto murmured. "He is something of a danger, then."

"We've always known that," Rin replied flatly. "That's why I'm watching him."

"Of course, Little Prince."


	4. Chapter 4

Rin jumped on his bed, trying to jump high enough to catch one of the little demons floating around near the ceiling. They looked weird, like some mad scientist had mushed together a cat and a tadpole.

"What are you up to now, Little Prince?"

"Astaroth!" Rin leapt off the bed and threw himself at his brother. "I'm trying to catch one of those thingies."

Astaroth hugged him and set him down. "They're called coal tars," the demon said. "They belong to me."

"Oh." The bright smile slid off the nine-year-old's face. "Do you mind that I've been chasing them? I can stop if you want."

"Not at all," Astaroth grinned. "They're just silly little things anyway."

"Okay," Rin smiled again.

A shape dropped from the ceiling beside them, making Rin jump. The new demon had green hair that came to a point at the top of his head between green horns and scaly, muscled green arms. Rin though he looked like a lizard with all that green.

"Your coal tars are all over my garden, Astaroth," the green demon said.

"Where have you been, Amaimon?" Astaroth demanded. "Father will be angry you weren't here with everyone to meet Rin."

Amaimon shrugged. "I was in Assiah. What's a Rin?"

"Me," Rin said, a bit offended. He glared as Amaimon studied him with a blank face and wide eyes. His tail twitched in annoyance, and he knew his flames were glowing brighter.

"A half-demon with Father's flames. Interesting," the green demon said to himself. "Your tail is out, Brother."

Rin gaped as Amaimon just walked away. "What was that all about?"

"That was Amaimon," Astaroth replied. "He's the youngest of the demon kings, besides you of course."

"I don't think he likes me," Rin said quietly.

Astaroth squeezed his shoulder with one big hand. "He doesn't know you yet, Little Prince," he reminded Rin. "Amaimon is…odd. He's like a child." The horned demon smiled down at the youngest son of Satan. "I think, once he knows you, Amaimon will like you most of all."

Rin wasn't sure, but he nodded anyway.

"Oh!" Astaroth clapped his hands together, grinning widely. "I almost forgot. I have something for you. I've been watching you chase my little coal tars since you came here, so…ah ha!" He produced something from his pocket and presented it to Rin with a flourish.

"A net!" Rin cried, taking the gift. "Thanks, Astaroth!"

Astaroth laughed at his excitement. "You are welcome, Little Prince. Now, how about we go catch those pesky coal tars floating around in Amaimon's garden? That'll make you great friends, I'm sure!"

* * *

High in the rafters of the gymnasium, Rin watched the would-be exorcists flee in the face of giant frogs. Well, Reapers, but Rin had always preferred to think of them as just big, ugly frogs. Kind of stupid. The humans were too emotional, because the Reapers were four times their size, and the frog demons were picking up on it.

What a disaster.

A handful of coal tars drifted out of the shadows and floated toward him. Rin scooped one out of the air and scratched between its tiny cat-like ears with a fingernail.

"Hello, little ones," he murmured. "How are you?"

The coal tar in his hands closed its eyes, rolling its tiny body around against his fingers.

"Like that, huh?" Rin smiled. The other dust demons bumped against his fingers, jealous for his attention. "What are you all doing here? This isn't your kind of place."

One of the coal tars nudged against his face, then floated away. It looked back at him as if wanting to know why he wasn't following.

"Oh, I see." Rin stood on the narrow steel beam and stretched. "Well, lead me to him."

* * *

The coal tars led him to small, unused room in the cram school. The single window was covered, but Rin had expected that. Astaroth liked the dark.

"Little Prince!"

Rin let Astaroth pick him up and swing him around in a circle. "It's good to see you, Astaroth," he said, hugging the demon back. "What are you doing here?"

"Can't I miss my brother?" Astaroth grinned. "It gets boring in Gehenna now that you're gone. Mephisto's always here, Lucifer is off doing whatever it is he does, and Amaimon is with you whenever he can be." The tall demon sighed dramatically. "Satan is so very dull when he's plotting, you know."

"Oh, alright," Rin teased. He cupped his hands and summoned a small fire between them, creating just enough light to see a desk to sit on. "Yeah, I've had a hell of a time trying to keep track of Brother."

"He's jealous." Astaroth sat on a desk opposite him, tapping out an uneven beat with his sharp nails. "You left him behind in a place he sees as your home to watch over a human."

"A human who is my twin," Rin pointed out.

"A twin who turned his back on you six years ago," Astaroth countered. He sighed. "Amaimon has always been alone. He is mischievous, and that has always angered Father more than it pleased him. He hardly notices Amaimon. Mephisto cares for him, but he is more of an authority than a friend. I would say Amaimon never really had a friend, until…"

"Until I showed up," Rin finished slowly. "What about Behemoth?"

Astaroth snorted. "A hobgoblin can hardly relate to a demon prince. As smart as that little menace is, it is you he's formed a real connection with. I think he feels like you've left him behind, that you don't think he is as important as this human you're watching."

"Of course not!" Rin's fire flared up with his anger. "I would never just leave Amaimon!"

"I know." Astaroth stood and swiped a hand through the air. The surface of the world turned brown and crumbled, seeming to rot away as the older demon's Gate opened. "But I'm not the one you need to tell." The Gate swallowed up Astaroth and closed with a nearly-audible rumble.

Rin sat and stared at the flames in his hands for a long moment. "Do I still need to tell you, or did you hear enough to know?" he called out eventually.

Amaimon dropped from the ceiling to the desk beside him without a sound. "You really wouldn't leave me?" he asked in a whisper.

"Never," Rin promised. He curled his tail around Amaimon's waist and pulled the demon closer. "Never."


End file.
